Synthetic benchmarks

The Samsung Galaxy Core LTE packs a dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU with a maximum frequency of 1.2GHz. There's 1GB of RAM in addition to the Imagination Technologies PowerVR SGX 544MP GPU. That hardware has been around for a while now, so we don't expect to be wowed by its performance.

Starting with the BenchmarkPi test, the Galaxy Core manages to score a tad better than the Galaxy S III mini. So far, the Galaxy Core LTE is off to a decent start.

Benchmark Pi

Lower is better

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini166

Sony Xperia Z264

HTC Butterfly266

Oppo Find 5267

HTC One X+280

LG Optimus G285

HTC One mini293

Samsung Galaxy Express346

Sony Xperia M400

Samsung Galaxy Grand408

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus409

Sony Xperia L435

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE466

Samsung Galaxy S III mini499

Samsung Galaxy Ace 3519

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE525

Sony Xperia go543

HTC Desire 600 dual sim554

Samsung Galaxy Core578

HTC Desire X639

Sony Xperia E dual800

Samsung Galaxy Young831

Linpack

Higher is better

Samsung Galaxy S4788

HTC One646

Sony Xperia Z630

HTC Butterfly624

LG Optimus G608

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini413

Sony Xperia SP348

HTC One mini320

Nexus 4213

Sony Xperia L191

HTC One X+177

Samsung Galaxy S III175

Sony Xperia M168

HTC One X160

LG Optimus 4X HD141

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE113

HTC Desire 600 dual sim108

Samsung Galaxy Core85

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE75

Samsung Galaxy Ace 368

Geekbench 3 factors in memory performance Here the Galaxy Core LTE managed to beat the Galaxy Ace 3, which is one of its main rivals, but fell behind the original Galaxy Core.

Geekbench 3

Higher is better

Samsung Galaxy Note 32937

Sony Xperia Z Ultra2670

Sony Xperia Z12638

Apple iPhone 5s2561

LG Nexus 52453

LG G22243

HTC One1972

HTC One Max1899

Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)1869

LG Optimus G1623

Meizu MX31579

Huawei Ascend P61315

LG Nexus 41288

HTC Butterfly1257

Oppo R8191047

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1041

HTC One mini887

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE647

Samsung Galaxy Ace 3564

Quadrant is a compound benchmarks, which takes into account not only CPU performance, but also memory and GPU. The Core LTE wasn't too shabby and did just as well as Sony's mid-range Xperia M and Xperia L. It also beat the original Galaxy Core result.

Quadrant

Higher is better

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini7153

HTC One mini6048

Sony Xperia V5816

HTC Desire 600 dual sim5053

Samsung Galaxy Express4998

Sony Xperia L4279

Sony Xperia M4147

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE4147

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE3935

Samsung Galaxy Grand3914

Samsung Galaxy Core3240

Samsung Galaxy Xcover 23152

And in Antutu, another compound benchmark, the modest chipset was able to shoot the Galaxy Core LTE ahead of the HTC One mini, which was a pleasant surprise.

AnTuTu

Higher is better

HTC One22678

Sony Xperia Z20794

Oppo Find 515167

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini14518

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE13109

HTC Butterfly12631

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE11616

HTC One mini11434

HTC Desire 600 dual sim11203

Samsung Galaxy Ace 310448

Sony Xperia M9902

Sony Xperia L9746

Nokia Lumia 6209140

Samsung Galaxy Core7408

Samsung Galaxy Xcover 26650

Time to put the Galaxy Core LTE PowerVR SGX 544MP GPU to a test. We ran the GFXBench T-Rex in 1080p offscreen mode. The meager 2.6fps is markedly unimpressive, but chances are it will never have to face 1080p screens in real life.

GFXBenchmark 2.7 T-Rex (1080p off-screen)

Higher is better

Sony Xperia Z123.0

Sony Xperia Z Ultra23.0

LG G222.0

Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)17.1

Samsung Galaxy S4 (Octa)17.1

Apple iPad 416.8

HTC Butterfly S16.0

Samsung Galaxy S4 Active16.0

Google Nexus 1013.9

LG Optimus G13.9

Sony Xperia Z13.5

Sony Xperia Tablet Z13.0

Sony Xperia ZL12.8

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini6.4

Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.36.3

HTC One mini5.6

Motorola Moto G 5.6

Samsung Galaxy Note II4.9

HTC Desire 700 dual sim3.2

Sony Xperia C2.8

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE2.6

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1.8

For a more accurate representation of the Galxy Core LTE real-life graphics prowess we stepped back to NenaMark 2. It managed to score 53.1fps in the on-screen test placing itself right below the HTC Desire 700 and beating all of its brethren such as the Galaxy Ace 3 and the Galaxy Grand Neo.

NenaMark 2

Higher is better

HTC Desire 700 dual sim56.0

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE53.1

Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo47.3

Samsung Galaxy Ace 347.3

Sony Xperia E dual27.7

Samsung Galaxy Fame26.9

HTC Sensation XE23.0

Sony Xperia J19.6

LG Optimus L719.3

Sony Xperia miro15.9

Samsung Galaxy mini 215.4

HTC Explorer15.1

Samsung Galaxy Y Duos13.2

Samsung Galaxy Pocket12.9

Samsung Galaxy Ace12.0

Finally, we move on to the web browsing benchmarks, where the we test the Samsung Galaxy Core LTE JavaScript and HTML5 performance. The Core LTE performed on par with most of the droids in its class.

SunSpider

Lower is better

Apple iPhone 5s403

Samsung Galaxy Note 3587

LG Nexus 5827

Sony Xperia Z1845

LG G2908

HTC One1174

Samsung Galaxy Ace 31337

HTC One mini1375

LG Nexus 41379

HTC Butterfly1397

Oppo R8191423

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus1460

Samsung Galaxy Grand1470

Samsung Galaxy Express1654

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1680

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1691

Samsung Galaxy Nexus1863

Samsung Galaxy Xcover 21901

HTC Desire X2259

BrowserMark 2

Higher is better

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini2314

HTC One2262

Sony Xperia V1957

Samsung Galaxy Ace 31902

Sony Xperia L1809

Sony Xperia M1642

Nokia Lumia 6201469

Samsung Galaxy Core1469

Samsung Galaxy Grand1252

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1174

Samsung Galaxy Express1154

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1100

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus1079

Samsung Galaxy Xcover 21036

Sony Xperia E992

Samsung Galaxy Young908

Vellamo

Higher is better

Sony Xperia SP2497

HTC One2382

Sony Xperia Z2189

Samsung Galaxy S42060

HTC Butterfly1866

Sony Xperia M1800

Sony Xperia L1640

HTC Desire 600 dual sim1572

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1478

Samsung Galaxy Ace 31409

Samsung Galaxy Core1366

Nexus 41310

Samsung Galaxy Core LTE1291

Samsung Galaxy Fame1234

Samsung Galaxy Young1072

Sony Xperia E dual1065

The Samsung Galaxy Core LTE may pack an outdated dual-core CPU, but it managed to punch above its weight in many of the tests here. It doesn't set any benchmarks on fire, of course, but it's not a disastrous performer either. And while the entry-level competitors that have moved to quad-core chipsets by MediaTek can comfortably outperform it, they can't match the 4G connectivity which is probably the reason you are checking the Galaxy Core LTE in the first place.